Previewing March Madness — Hornets style

With March Madness tipping-off this week, people will be buzzing all month. From upsets to buzzer-beaters, this competition has it all. Let’s take a look back on our current Charlotte Hornets, and how their alma maters are doing this year (sorry Nicolas Batum and Marco Belinelli, wish we could put you on the list!).

Kemba Walker, Jeremy Lamb — University of Connecticut. Walker, in his time for UCONN, set the court ablaze, averaging 16 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Jeremy Lamb, while at UCONN, averaged 14 points, five rebounds and two assists.

The Huskies had a down year, finishing just 16-17. They advanced two rounds in the American Athletic Conference to make it all the way to the semi-finals, just to lose to Cincinnati 81-71. Huskies fans are disappointed, considering the fact that they won the national championship with Kemba Walker just three years ago.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist — University of Kentucky. In his single year for the Wildcats, Kidd-Gilchrist averaged 12 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while also adding a block and a steal per game, not to mention, MKG was a lock down defender as well. Like Walker, MKG is also a national champion.

Kentucky had an outstanding year, finishing 29-5, and winning the SEC tournament. The Wildcats earned a two seed in the southern portion of the NCAA bracket. Kentucky has been dealt a date with Northern Kentucky, ironically. If they win, they will face either Dayton, or Wichita State, but will probably have to beat either North Carolina or UCLA.

Briante Weber, Treveon Graham — Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). When Briante Weber was at VCU, he was an all-around player, scoring seven points, three assists, and three rebounds per game. When Treveon Graham was with VCU, he electrified the court, averaging 13 points, six rebounds, and an assist per game.

The Rams had a decent year, and are what you could consider tournament regulars. VCU finished the season 26-8, finishing second in the regular season, but losing the finals in the Atlantic 10 tournament. They performed well enough to earn a 10 seed, facing off against St. Mary’s. If they win, there is a good chance that VCU could face Arizona in the second round. If they somehow beat Arizona in that game, they could face a match against Florida State. However, VCU has pulled off upsets before, I am confident that they can do it again.

Frank Kaminsky — Wisconsin. In Kaminsky’s final season for Wisconsin, he was getting the job done in many ways for the team, he averaged 19 points, three assists, eight rebounds, and one block per game.

The Badgers had an excellent season, finishing 25-9, but came short of the NCAA tournament, losing to Michigan in the Big Ten title game. Wisconsin has been revered as one of the better basketball programs in recent memory, and Kaminsky has been a direct product of that. Kaminsky has criticized the committee for seeding Wisconsin as an eight seed, low in Frank’s eyes. After all, they only had nine losses, UNC had seven losses and wound up with a one seed. Their first game is against ninth seeded Virginia Tech. If they win, they will probably have a game against Villanova, the reigning champions.

Marvin Williams — University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). When in Chapel Hill, Williams was perfect for the men in blue, averaging 11 points, seven rebounds, one assist, and one steal per game, helping the Tar Heels to a NCAA National Championship in 2005.

This year, the Tar Heels are one of the best teams in the country, finishing with a 27-7 record, losing to Duke in the semi-finals of the ACC tournament. It will be no easy task for UNC, as they were paired in the south along with UCLA and Kentucky. Their first match will take place against Texas Southern.

Miles Plumlee — Duke University. When Miles played for Duke, he averaged only five points and five rebounds per game. As of recent, Duke is on a roll, they won the ACC Championship, and finished the season with a 27-8 record. They have the second seed overall, and will be looking to win the national championship for the second time in three years. They open the tournament against Troy,

Cody Zeller — Indiana. In his time at Indiana, Zeller averaged 16 points, seven rebounds, and one assist per game.

This season, the Hoosiers were disappointing, finishing 18-15. They were not invited to the NCAA tournament, however, are a third seed in the NIT tournament.

Ramon Sessions — University of Nevada, Reno. Sessions was an exhilarating guard for Nevada, averaging 12 points, five rebounds, and five assists in his final year.

This season, Nevada finished with a 28-6 record. They managed a 79-71 win in this year’s Mountain West Tournament Final. In the NCAA tournament, they will play fifth seeded Iowa State in the first round. If they can upset Iowa State, they will play either Purdue or Vermont.

Christian Wood— UNLV. The power forward was solid for the rebels, averaging 16 points, 10 rebounds, one assist, and three blocks per game.

Recently, the Rebels have struggled, finishing 11-21.

Brian Roberts — Dayton. While with the Flyers, Roberts averaged 16 points, three rebounds, and three assists per game.

The Flyers had enough to make the tournament this season, finishing with a record of 24-7, and won the regular season portion of the Atlantic 10 conference. They earned a seven seed, will play 10th-seeded Wichita State. A win would give them a chance to play, and even beat Kentucky, which would not make one of Roberts’ current teammates happy (but certainly not MKG).

What would this list be without some Hornets Legends?

Muggsy Bogues — Wake Forest. The 5’3” guard was while playing for the Demon Decons, averaging 15 points, 10 assists, two steals, and four rebounds. As of late, Wake has been decent. Finishing off the season 19-13. In their first game in the NCAA tournament, Wake Forest will play Kansas State. By the time this article is published, that games result will already be determined.

Larry Johnson — UNLV. When playing for the Rebels, Johnson was a stat-machine. He averaged 23 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block per game for UNLV.

Dell Curry — Virginia Tech. The all-time leader in points for the Hornets was an amamzing player in college as well. In his final year for the Hokies, averaging 24 points, 4 assists, and seven rebounds. This year, Tech has an outstanding year. They finished 22-10, and earned a stop in the NCAA Tournament this year. They are going to play Wisconsin in the first round, and if they win, they will likely play Villanova.